Apple Briefly Hits $5 Trillion Market Cap, Second Ever
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- Apple briefly hit a $5.036 trillion market cap at a session high of $342.89 per share on Tuesday, becoming just the second company ever — after Nvidia — to cross the $5 trillion mark
- Apple ended the session up 0.2% at $337.70 with a $4.96 trillion market cap, having overtaken Nvidia as the world's most valuable company earlier this month; Nvidia had held the top spot since June 2025
- Apple's 24% year-to-date stock gain has outpaced the other six "Magnificent 7" tech stocks, fueled by strong product demand and its deliberate sidestep of the AI infrastructure spending race sapping cash flows at Big Tech rivals
- Apple relies on Google's technology to power a revamped Siri rather than building in-house AI models, avoiding the data-center investments that have made Big Tech investors wary of payoff timelines
- Apple held iPhone prices steady last month while raising MacBook and iPad prices, prompting buyers to scoop up iPhones ahead of expected future price hikes, analysts said
- Apple on Tuesday launched a U.S. device leasing program with Klarna, offering monthly payments starting at $17.99 for an iPhone, $11.99 for an Apple Watch or iPad, and $24.99 for a Mac
- Apple is set to report Q3 earnings after Thursday's close, with analysts projecting more than a 15% revenue jump from a year earlier
Why it matters: Apple's $5 trillion milestone and 24% year-to-date outperformance versus the Magnificent 7 shows its contrarian bet — avoiding the AI data-center arms race while leaning on Google's models — is paying off in investor dollars just as the rest of Big Tech faces mounting scrutiny over infrastructure ROI.
